Cybercrimes and the Rule of Law in West-Africa: The Republic of Cote d’Ivoire as a Case-Study.

Since becoming independent nations in the 60s, West-African countries have enacted laws and regulations with the goals of ensuring peace and justice within their respective borders. On the paper, there was no difference between the justice systems of those newly independent nations and the justice systems of their former masters. Unfortunately, the rule of law in West-African nations since gaining independence, has not always been followed for a myriad of social, cultural, political, and economic reasons. Most justice systems in West-Africa including in Cote d’Ivoire are deeply corrupted, thus rendering the goal of a peaceful society through a fair justice system mute. With the emergence of a new type of crimes taking place in cyberspace, there has been a logical need to enact new laws to protect the public using the added information and communication technologies (ICT). Over the past few years, multiple cyber-legislations have sprung-up all over Africa including in Cote d’Ivoire. The fundamental question is to ask whether the enforcement of cybercrimes laws is more successful than the enforcement of traditional laws. The problem of the enforceability of these cybercrime legislations is compounded by the very nature of cyberspace which is “borderless.” Faced with the complexity of those computer crimes taking place in the virtual space, do West-African countries in general and specifically Cote d’Ivoire have the infrastructure, the knowledge, and the workforce to efficiently investigate and prosecute cybercrimes? This research tries to investigate, expose the theoretical inadequation between cybercrimes legislations and the enforcement capabilities of the Ivorian state, based on the deficiencies of enforcement of traditional laws and the need to stem the tide of corruption in general and specifically in the justice system. This research uses the case-study method because case studies are in-depth investigations of a single person, group, event, or community. Our findings have confirmed our assumptions that the enforcement of cybercrime laws is flawed due to the lack of proper equipment, skills of law enforcement personnel, even though the country has put in place many agencies to fight against cybercrimes. The social, cultural, political, and economical determinants that have always inhibited the fair and just enforcement of traditional laws is exerting the same kind of pressure on the capabilities of Law enforcement when it comes to the investigation and prosecution of cybercrimes in Cote d’Ivoire. This research, far from being exhaustive, needs a follow-up research in the future when the country retrieves its past stability and social peace which will allow a more open cooperation between researchers and the different authorities leading the fight against cybercrimes

What are the impacts and cost-effectiveness of strategies to improve performance of untrained and under-trained teachers in the classroom in developing countries?

What are the impacts and cost effectiveness of strategies to improve performance of untrained and under-trained teachers in the classroom in developing countries

Neighborhood Dynamics of Race and Ethnicity in the 21st Century: Residential Segregation and Poverty Concentration within Chicago, Illinois; 2000-2010

Residential landscapes throughout the urban United States have long been associated with high levels of racial and ethnic segregation. The increased ethnic diversification occuring across many larger urban areas has somewhat altered this dynamic. Chicago, Illionois is one major city possessing a long history of being highly segregated residentially. The city is especially noted for the exceptionally high levels of separation that have always existed between African-Americans and whites. Like many major cities the last few years, it has increasingly became home to larger numbers of Hispanics and Asians, a trend that has altared its residential geography. This research investigates the impacts that increased diversity had on levels of residential segregation among racial and/or ethnic groups within Chicago from 2000 to 2010. Empirical analysis entailed the measurement of two dimensions of segregation evident among Non-Hispanic whites, African-Americans, Hispanics and Asians. We focus particular attention to the role that segregation has in terms of influencing degrees to which these different groups are exsposed to poverty residentially. During the decade, African-American Chicagoans as a group became slightly less residentially isolated. Conversely, results confirm that both Asians, and Hispanics appear to be exhibiting forms of “ethnic (or racial) self-selectivity” that functioned to spatially concentrate them within their own neighborhoods. The demographic composition of the city’s extremly poor neighborhoods changed during the decade, yet they remained predominantly black. Findings lead us to conclude that in 2010 Chicago was still a highly segregated, albeit increasingly diverse, city

Controlling Fungus Attack on Indigenous Ghanaian Vegetable Tanned Leathers

The attack of fungus on indigenous Ghanaian tanned leather and leather products lessen their surface qualities and socio-economic values. The paper describes technology that can be adopted to control the development of mould that affect the value of leather and leather products as a result of fungus attack.. Experiments were carried out using material/technical means to determine the possibility of restraining the negative impact of fungus attack associated with indigenous tanned leathers. The material/technical means refer to the use of sanding tool, to sand off excess flesh on the flesh side of leather; then also washing over leather with lime juice, boarding bee wax into leather and again rubbing over leather with thin layer of spray lacquer to protect it from moisture. The experiments proved that the presence of excess flesh and fatty substances left after tanning are the primary causes for development of mould on leather and finished leather products. The technology so devised has led to the production of leathers that can resist the effect of fungus attack. Key Words: Fungus, Moisture, Sanding, Mould, Leather

Education and Employment Outcomes in Ghana through the Lens of the Capability Approach

Existing literature on education and employment confirms that in Ghana educational qualification largely influences the type of work. Through the lens of the Capability Approach, which sees human development in terms of the expansion of freedoms and opportunities, this paper identifies, for a cross-section of Ghanaians, the array of employment opportunities between and within education endowments. “Between endowments” refers to differentials in opportunities for individuals with different levels of educational qualifications, while “within endowments” considers the differentials for individuals with the same level of education. The source of data is the 2005/06 Ghana Living Standard Survey (GLSS5). Results show that education is not enough to erase inequalities. Multinomial regression analysis demonstrates that functionings differ according to the individual’s context, household and personal conversion factors. This is explained by inequalities in the requirements for a particular job (between educational endowments) and by job accessibility due to personal characteristics (within educational endowments)

Integrated Flower Vases in Clayware and Wood

The local pottery industry faces tremendous challenges from the increasing interest Ghanaian are showing in imported products because of their functional value, quality and aesthetic appeal. This is due among others, to the monotonous approach to production and finishing of indigenous products, conditions that also marred the philosophical impact they are supposed to convey. To overcome some of these challenges the researchers experimented on the integration clay-wear and wood for the production of flower vases. The qualitative research method where observational, experimental and descriptive approaches were employed to investigate the viability of integrating clay-wear with wood for the project. The research unveiled that clay-wear and wood can be integrated in the production of finished products that are functional, aesthetically presentable and of high quality. Besides, it is also proven that with appropriate manipulation through experiment other locally available raw materials can be used to produce products would convey the Ghanaian culture to would be buyers and the outside world. Keywords: Clay, Wood, Integration, Decoration, Production

Silicon Nanowires: Doping Dependent N- And P- Channel FET Behavior

The electrical transport properties of field effect transistor (FET) devices made of silicon nanowires (SiNWs) synthesized by pulsed laser vaporization (PLV) were studied. From as-grown PLV-SiNW FET, we found p-channel FET behavior with low conductance. To improve conductance, spin on glass (SOG) and vapor doping were used to dope phosphorus and indium into SiNW, respectively. From doping after synthesis, we could successfully make both n- and p-channel FET devices

An Integrative Framework for Entrepreneurship Research in Africa

Despite the good intentions in sub-Sahara Africa (SSA), previous policy initiatives on entrepreneurship have been disjointed, unambitious, and implemented without commitment and required resources. Furthermore, there has been limited research that can provide insight into the reasons why some of the policy initiatives appear to be successful while others fail. Some scholars have suggested that without a context-specific classificatory guide, policymakers are unlikely to be accurate in their assessment of the growth capabilities of prospective candidates for specific promotion initiatives and this can explain some of the policy failures. This observation has motivated the present paper. Our aim is to provide a framework that helps identify the different contextual dimensions influencing enterprise creation processes in SSA

An Integrative Framework for Formal and Informal Entrepreneurship Research in Africa

It is a well-established practice of many Sub-Sahara African (SSA) governments to aid entrepreneurs within both the formal and informal sectors in order to enhance their performance and growth. Unfortunately, there is no agreed method by which governments can differentiate between entrepreneurs and target them with the appropriate promotion policies. Thus, despite the good intentions, entrepreneurship policy initiatives have been incorrectly targeted, poorly implemented and without the desired results, since different entrepreneurs may require different forms of assistance. Some scholars have suggested that without a context-specific classificatory guide, policymakers are unlikely to be accurate in their assessment of the growth capabilities of prospective candidates for specific promotion initiatives and this can explain some of the policy failures. This observation has motivated the present paper. Our objective is to provide a framework that helps identify the different contextual dimensions influencing formal and informal enterprise creation processes in SSA